Meet the Team

“We are Groot.”

~ GrootGuardians of the Galaxy

We are a two-person brand & digital agency located in Asheville, NC. What does that mean? We offer creative strategies to get you noticed and make you look good on paper and on screens. We combined our forces (and our names… see if you notice) to offer our unique perspectives to other small business owners to help them grow.

Why hire us?

Other than the fact that we’re awesome… you get the benefit of focused attention. You’ll talk to only two people during the course of your project… no account managers, customer service reps, etc.

And, if you’re a small business owner, we get what you’re going through. Each of us has worked for and/or started our own businesses even before Sparking Design.

Chris Sparks

Idea Jedi, Operations Lead

Super Power: X-Ray perception

Turn ons: hiking at night, a well told joke, compassion for others

Turn offs: mean people, bad coffee, The Empire

Weakness: ice cream, Donkey Kong & 80s arcade games

Random fact: has seen Elton John 13 times in concert

I am a sixth-generation native of the Asheville area with strong ties to the local community. I have owned or worked for small businesses all my life. I take pride in getting to know my clients and their preferences and going beyond their expectations. I’m thrilled that Sparking Design enables me to combine my love for design and building client relationships.

I am a lifelong fan of the comic medium and the driving force and editor behind Team Cul de Sac: Cartoonists Draw the Line at Parkinson’s, a book nominated for an Eisner and multiple Harvey awards. I was honored to receive the 2013 Bob Clampett Humanitarian Award for my work on the Team Cul de Sac project which raises money for Parkinson’s Disease research for the Michael J Fox Foundation. Since its inception in 2010, we have raised over $250,000 for the MJFF.

I am also a board member of the Verner Center of Early Learning, a nonprofit agency providing high quality, affordable early care and education to children birth to five years old throughout Buncombe County.

In my spare time, I enjoy time with my wife, daughter and our two cats. My favorite outdoor activities include tennis, hiking and cycling. (This year I finally learned how to ride a bike.) Otherwise, you’ll find me reading (comics, sci-fi, biographies, outdoor adventure and history books), watching DC Comics TV shows and a wide range of movies, or just enjoying the fine craft brew and amazing food this town has to offer.

Jamie King

Design Master, Creative Lead

Super Power: pixel perfect vision

Turn ons: color swatches, baby animals, humor

Turn offs: bad kerning, talking during movies, the First Order

Weakness: donuts

Random fact: has the rarest Meyers-Briggs personality type (INFJ)

Design has been my passion for as long as I can remember; my bedroom growing up was a veritable art supply store. You would be hard-pressed to find an artistic medium or craft that I have not tried. My artistic voice was honed in traditional art classes at the University of North Florida, where I earned a BFA in Painting and Drawing. Soon after, I traded my paintbrushes for a computer mouse, completing a Digital Media degree from AB Tech in Asheville.

It has always been important to me to be a well-rounded designer. My diverse experience has taught me that small details make a huge difference, as long as you never lose sight of the big picture.

The last few years, I have been proud to give back to our local web community by serving as an organizer of WordCamp Asheville, a three day conference for WordPress enthusiasts. My role on the Design Team has lead to the most fun I’ve had as a designer.

When not working, you’ll find me gardening, crafting, experimenting in the kitchen, watching sci-fi movies or doing online research (i.e. wasting time on Pinterest).

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Some of our thoughts…

Hopefully, you get this kind of reaction when someone visits your site.
75% of website visitors admit to making judgments about a company’s credibility based on that company’s website design. (Stanford University)Your website is the virtual face of your business.It works for you and represents you 24/7. It's often the first time someone will interact with your brand. Don't let a bad first impression ruin your chances for growth or a positive user interaction with your … Read More → about When is it time for a website redesign?

A word from our awesome clients…

Chris and Jamie have created a very effective website for Mountain Made and continue to keep us up on any needed changes or improvements. They also do graphic design work for us–our rack cards and special cards that we do for artists at Mountain Made.

I have worked with Jamie and Chris on three different websites over the past eight years as well as on a number of print and design projects. They have always been responsive to my needs, innovative in their ideas and design, and at the forefront of knowledge in their craft. This shows in the beauty of my current website which reflects my personality and style in the frontend while the backend of the site is incredibly easy for me (a reasonably smart person with limited computer training) to use. And when I run into trouble, one of the other of them is always there to help. (I don’t even need to bribe them with cookies!) I can’t recommend them highly enough.

The remarkable team at Sparking design offer a personal approach to web development and brand building. Jamie worked tirelessly to interpret our vision and represent our company mission during the initial evolution of our new web site and logo design. They also took the time to explain each step of the process, and the final product was more than we expected! They have continued to meet every maintenance need and are always pleasant and responsive. I am so grateful to work with Chris and Jamie and highly recommend them for your branding, web development and graphic design needs.

I would highly recommend anyone in the need of professional website design services, and/or logo design, to talk to Chris and Jamie at Sparking Design before choosing anyone else in Asheville. Chris and Jamie are extremely talented, professional, and easy to work with. Moreover, they are affordable, especially considering the high quality product they produce and their willingness to work with you to ensure that your unique needs are met. Jamie’s logo design transformed the ‘face’ of our business, and the website design, which incorporated the new logo, will bring us a modern online presence that we previously lacked.